A smart look at the news, innovations, and shifts in social impact work, work culture, and leadership, from the Future of Good editorial team.
The social impact world has a duty to root out systemic racism — both for the racialized professionals working in the sector and for the racialized communities it’s trying to serve. The problem is that many white leaders of organizations doing good see their work as inherently anti-racist. This is not the case.
Black leaders are underrepresented in most, if not all, parts of the social impact world — from tech for good to corporate social responsibility to philanthropy. For instance, a recent study by the Foundation for Black Communities found that Black-led non-profits receive a minuscule amount of philanthropic funding in Canada. But there are Black leaders transforming the world of impact, regardless, and their stories are important.
Much of the social impact world’s learning and development happens through connection — learning from others in the field, and having deep conversations. A pandemic makes that difficult, but not impossible, says e180’s Christine Renaud.
President-elect Joe Biden is promising to undo many of the worst abuses of the Trump administration. Yet these issues, from racism to immigration abuses to a lack of global development, are also present in Canada. The social impact sector cannot think of them as just American issues.
Rapid changes to all work and workforces — including in the social impact world — are underway. To adapt and thrive, organizations need to foster an employee culture that encourages constant learning.
If today’s businesses would like to compete in an increasingly socially capitalist world, they’ll need to learn how to advance social capitalism within their own organizations —processes and values that have kept them ethical, sustainable, and more affordable than their competitors. This story is in partnership with the TELUS Pollinator Fund for Good.